With digital equipment becoming increasingly networked, either on wired or wireless networks, for personal and professional use alike, distributed software systems have become a crucial element in information and communications technologies. The study of these systems forms the core of the ARLES' work, which is specifically concerned with defining new system software architectures, based on the use of emerging networking technologies. In this context, we concentrate on the study of distributed systems which bring to life the vision of ubiquitous computing systems, also known as ambient intelligence.

반도체 공정 overview

Natural Science Foundation of China[30000213, 30370160, 30670214]; National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program)[2009CB522300]; Chinese Academy of Sciences

Meliaceous limonoids: chemistry and biological activities.

Leaf-cutting ants of the Attini tribe are a major pest of agricultural and forestry productions in the New World. Economic losses caused by these ants were estimated at several million dollars per year. These ants need to live in symbiosis with a basidiomycete fungus. Due to their mutualistic interaction with the symbiotic fungus, management of Attini ants can be done with insecticides or fungicides or both. So far, synthetic pesticides were the main control means, albeit with negative effects on the environment. Very few studies describe alternative methods for the control of leaf-cutting ants such as the use of insecticidal and fungicidal plant extracts. There is therefore a need of knowledge on phytochemicals and plants that could be used as insecticides and fungicides. Here, we review chemicals of plant origin and species with insecticidal and fungicidal activities. We establish a list of plants and phytochemicals that could manage leaf-cutting ants and also other insects, notably insects that use fungus-based agriculture. An exhaustive literature search of 1965 references from 1923 to 2010 was conducted using scientific databases, chemical databases, botanical databases, and books to identify published papers related to insecticidal and fungicidal chemical compounds stemmed from plant species. The major points are the following: (1) 119 and 284 chemicals have been cited in the literature for their insecticidal and fungicidal activities, respectively; (2) 656 and 1,064 plant species have significant insecticidal and fungicidal activities, respectively; (3) 3 main chemical classes were most cited for these activities: alkaloids, phenolics, and terpenoids; (4) 20 interesting chemicals with the both insecticidal and fungicidal activities were found; and (5) 305 plant species containing these chemicals were cited. To conclude, 20 chemicals: caryophyllene oxide, cinnamaldehyde, eugenol, helenalin, linalool, menthone, myristicin, pulegone, thymol, anethole, anisaldehyde, elemicin, isopimpinellin, plumbagin, podophyllotoxin, psoralen, xanthotoxin, anonaine, solamargine, and tomatine; two main plant families, Lamiaceae and Apiaceae; and 17 species of these families were particularly interesting for the management of leaf-cutting ants.

Insecticidal and antifungal chemicals produced by plants: a review

Leaf-cutting ants, being the principal herbivores and ecosystem engineers in the Neotropics, have been considered to be a keystone species in natural ecosystems and agroecosystems, due to the direct and indirect effects of their plant defoliation activities. This review summarizes current concepts of the biological and ecological importance of leaf-cutting ants. The ants' pest status is briefly assessed from both ecological and evolutionary points of view. A general overview of control measures is provided. Leaf-cutting ants have evolved physical, symbiotic and behavioural mechanisms that allow them to overcome the chemical, biological, mechanical and cultural methods that have been used to manage their populations. Given the highly complex ecology of these ants, simple methods of control should not be expected. Sound management strategies must alternate between, and combine, different methods.

Leaf-cutting ants revisited: Towards rational management and control

Brazilian forest producers have developed integrated management programs to increase the effectiveness of the control of leaf-cutting ants of the genera Atta and Acromyrmex. These measures reduced the costs and quantity of insecticides used in the plantations. Such integrated management programs are based on monitoring the ant nests, as well as the need and timing of the control methods. Chemical control employing baits is the most commonly used method, however, biological, mechanical and cultural control methods, besides plant resistance, can reduce the quantity of chemicals applied in the plantations.

/pdf/an-overview-of-integrated-management-of-leaf-cutting-ants-392p2vx3ah.pdf

An Overview of Integrated Management of Leaf-Cutting Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Brazilian Forest Plantations

Nine limonoids were isolated from Carapa guianensis and Cedrela fissilis Among them, 1,2-dihydro-3b-hydroxy-7-deacetoxy-7-oxogedunin is a new compound Moreover, the assignments of some chemical shifts of xyloccensin k have been corrected and 1H NMR data of 7-deacetylgedunin have been assigned for the first time These isolated limonoids were assayed on Atta sexdens rubropilosa workers showing moderate insecticidal activities

/pdf/limonoids-from-andiroba-oil-and-cedrela-fissilis-and-their-27n77xrpry.pdf

Limonoids from andiroba oil and Cedrela fissilis and their insecticidal activity

The current study compared the toxicity of different concentrations of boric acid in adult workers of Atta sexdens rubropilosa Forel (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with toxicological bioassays, and examining the dose-dependent and time-dependent histopathological changes, of the midgut, Malpighian tubules, and postpharyngeal glands. Our results revealed the importance of conducting toxicological bioassays combined with morphological analyses of the organs of ants chronically exposed to insecticides used in commercial ant baits. In vitro bioassays showed that boric acid significantly decreases the survivorship of workers regardless of concentration, whereas the morphological data suggested progressive dose-dependent and time-dependent changes in the organs examined, which were evident in the midgut. The midgut is the first organ to be affected, followed by the postpharyngeal gland and Malpighian tubules. This sequence is in agreement with the absorption pathway of this chemical compound in the midgut, its transference to the hemolymph, possibly reaching the postpharyngeal glands, and excretion by the Malpighian tubules. These progressive changes might be due to the cumulative and delayed effect of boric acid. Our findings provide important information for the understanding of the action of boric acid in ant baits in direct and indirect target organs.

https://bioone.org/journals/journal-of-economic-entomology/volume-103/issue-3/EC09159/Toxicological-and-Histopathological-Effects-of-Boric-Acid-on-Atta-sexdens/10.1603/EC09159.pdf

Toxicological and Histopathological Effects of Boric Acid on Atta sexdens rubropilosa (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Workers

The chemical investigation of the fruits of Cipadessa fruticosa (Meliaceae) afforded the new limonoid cipadesin B and the known swietemahonolide. From the roots of Cedrela fissilis (Meliaceae) were isolated the limonoid 3b-acetoxycarapin, new as natural product, along with the triterpenes oleanolic and oleanonic acid. These compounds and other six mexicanolide limonoids previously isolated from C. fruticosa showed insecticidal activity against the leaf-cutting ants Atta sexdens rubropilosa.

/pdf/limonoids-from-cipadessa-fruticosa-and-cedrela-fissilis-and-3ariyvkqjl.pdf

Limonoids from Cipadessa fruticosa and Cedrela fissilis and their insecticidal activity

Centro de Estudos de Insetos Sociais Univ. Estadual Paulista - UNESP, Caixa Postal 199, CEP 13506-900, Rio Claro-SP

F. C. Bueno

Papers

Limonoids from andiroba oil and Cedrela fissilis and their insecticidal activity

Toxicological and Histopathological Effects of Boric Acid on Atta sexdens rubropilosa (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Workers

Limonoids from Cipadessa fruticosa and Cedrela fissilis and their insecticidal activity

Toxicity of sesame seed to leaf-cutting ant Atta sexdens rubropilosa (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Toxicity of Cedrela fissilis to Atta sexdens rubropilosa (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and its symbiotic fungus